October 3, 2012

Loss of a candle adds to the darkness

My heartfelt condolences to Dr Afraashim's family! A brightly burning candle is lost! The second of October will be marked as yet another dark day in the history of Maldives when we observe the innocence of our nation whither away as mindless and inhuman actions become ever more common. Wise minds help to build a resilient nation, and without the human experience of social and intellectual interaction and communication, such wisdom cannot flower and resilience cannot emerge --we cease to be a nation worth its salt; some people call these "failed states". Failed even before we have begun? Is this the vote of confidence we give to democracy? I cry for our nation today yet again as we see lives being lost -- lives that can make a difference in our society for the intellectual and moral contributions they can make. Devoid of the presence of such inputs, national development through mere accumulation of material wealth will be but like a line drawn on water --fleeting and transient --lost in a moment.
I pray we learn from these instances, to wake up and reflect on the heinousness of such actions that bring sustained sorrow and bereavement to whole families and communities. Our hope for a harmonious nation lies in the degree of our tolerance. Our Islam teaches us about tolerance and surrender. Do we want to let go of that wonderful hand-hold we have? Perhaps we may never know its wonder until we hit rock-bottom and have no life line left. Then it maybe too late. I would implore our leaders to take decisive action to pull us out of this shameful pit we are in as a nation.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Someone once said that a circle is the reflection of eternity. It has no beginning and it has no end - and if you put several circles over each other, then you get a spiral.

to continue the idea, we all form the spiral; whether a sacrifice was in vain or not will depend on how deep it cuts us, which will be determined to a great extent by the substance that defines us or makes us who we are.

Abdul Sattar Yoosuf said...

Beautifully expressed! Would it be the weight of tears that defines our substance? Could anonymous reveal himself/herself to me? This is a good discussion to continue. My email address is yoosufa5@gmail.com Thanks for your interest in the blog.